Japan’s Internet Giant GMO Unveils First-Ever Bitcoin Mining Rig

Japanese internet giant GMO has unveiled the country’s first bitcoin mining rig called the B2, this week.

In addition to being the first wholly Japanese developed bitcoin mining device, the B2 is also the first miner to use 7nm semiconductor chips, allowing it to achieve performance and efficiency gains over devices already sold on the market. Bitmain’s Antminer s9, in comparison, uses 16nm chip, and Halong Mining’s DragonMint T1 uses a 10nm chip made by Samsung.

GMO believes that launching this miner is the first step in ousting Bitmain—which currently manufactures around 80% of all ASIC miners—as the leading force in the industry.

“I respect Bitmain, but we will top them,” GMO CEO Masatoshi Kumagai said.

According to Bloomberg reporter Yuji Nakamura, the B2’s 7nm chips were produced in Taiwan, most probably by TSMC, the same company that supplies Bitmain with most of its chips.

The B2 will be sold for $1,999, a bit more expensive than the S9, which is sold for $837. However the company insists its specs are way more superior compared to Bitmain’s flagship product. GMO reveals that the B2 can reach 24 TH/s compared to S9’s 14 TH/s, at 1950W per unit. GMO will start accepting pre-orders for the B2 from June 6, and will start shipping on October.